Jacqui Lambie (Tasmania, Jacqui Lambie Network) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate take note of the answer given by the Special Minister of State (Senator Farrell) to a question without notice asked by Senator Lambie today relating to the federal election.

Today I asked the Special Minister of State, Minister Farrell, about his plans to reform our election funding. On 20 June this year, Minister Farrell told Michele Grattan:

The Australian electoral system shouldn't be just open to people with lots of money.

I agree with him on that. Tasmanians know that the Jacqui Lambie Network don't take big donations from big corporates or unions. Our average donation is 25 bucks. Senator Tyrrell and I do it the old-fashioned way. We chuck on our jeans and boots and we talk to Tasmanians. We go and earn it. That's how we do it.

The joint standing committee's report into Australian election funding made 15 recommendations. Some of them are good—like reducing the cap on disclosable donations from $15,200 to $1,000. The minister is trying to pull the wool over the eyes of Australians. He knows damn well that putting a cap on donations won't really hurt the major parties.

In the same interview Minister Farrell said that he wants a level playing field. The minister already knows that it's not a level playing field and it is doing nothing about the main funnel for dark money to the major parties. How do they do this? They set up different entities. Let's call them dark money hubs because that's exactly what they are. These dark money hubs get cash from big donors and then funnel that money back to the parties. The coalition has 68 associated entities or dark money hubs. This is to their 15 federal and state branches. The coalition can multiply donations up to the threshold 83 times. A family group could have given $17.8 million over the three years leading up to the last federal election and nobody would ever know.

By the way, business membership forums, fundraising dinners and events are not treated as donations that have to be disclosed to the Australian public. Wait. It gets worse. The red and blue teams both have associated business arms that charge large annual membership fees in exchange for special policy briefings. That's right; you can buy a meeting with the minister. That's how it works. Membership fees to the Liberal Australian Business Network and the Labor Business Forum are split into three groups. You can get yourself silver membership for $25,000, gold membership for $55,000 and the whole kit and caboodle, platinum membership, for $110,000.

Putting a cap on election campaign funding will do nothing to bring these dark hubs into the light. The minister and this government will tell you they care about transparency and electoral reform. It's pretty clear to me that they do not. All they care about is keeping themselves in power and keeping out the Independents who will hold them to account. Australians, this is a really big problem. There will be a lot more of this coming out. It's absolutely filthy how the major parties work. This is what we are up against. They will do everything in their power. In the future they will do everything that they can to get rid of Independents and micro parties. I say this to you: start praying in church—because I can assure you that the Australian people are right on to you, and this situation is not going away. Keep feeding your own funnel.

Question agreed to.